Finish for a benchtop

[Gumbungle]

Hi all,
Would like some thoughts regarding suitable finishes for a cypress pine kitchen benchtop.
Am leaning toward pure tung oil, but some people have advised 2 part marine gloss finishes.
What do fellow woodies think ?

cheers

Gumbungle

[elanjacobs]

Tung oil gives a nice, deep look, but the initial application is quite a task and it will need to be maintained. If you do it well the first time, maintenance is minimal, but it's something to keep in mind.

I would stay away from gloss finishes on any worktop, after a week you'll be seeing little scratches everywhere and it's all downhill from there. A semi-gloss, satin or matt finish is much more practical.

[Gumbungle]

Tung oil gives a nice, deep look, but the initial application is quite a task and it will need to be maintained. If you do it well the first time, maintenance is minimal, but it's something to keep in mind.

I would stay away from gloss finishes on any worktop, after a week you'll be seeing little scratches everywhere and it's all downhill from there. A semi-gloss, satin or matt finish is much more practical.
]
Thanks for that. I'm doing this for a friend who definately prefers hard & glossy, whereas I'd prefer a renewable finish like several wiped-on tung oil coats, then an occasional re-application.
Went to a professional paint shop in Dubbo and the bloke recommended Northane 2 part poly. He also said that matte or semi-gloss finishes are more porous, which I hadn't heard before.

Gumbungle

[Trav]

If you're going to cut directly on the benchtop, then use an oil, as a 2 pack is too hard to keep looking nice. If you like a high gloss look, like wood covered in plastic, then 2 pack is for you!

As you can probably tell, I am not a fan of gloss poly finishes. They look good on boats and painted things, but nothing else.

Trav

[elanjacobs]

Cypress pine is a relatively light colour, so scratches won't show up as much as on a darker timber, but make sure your friend understands that it WILL end up looking pretty average and that he won't try and get you to fix it for free.

I'm not a polisher, so can't comment on any brand. I've never heard of the gloss level affecting porosity, but he's the expert so he should know.

[Gumbungle]

Thanks Trav and elanjacobs - I'm definitely with you guys - trying to gather a body of evidence/experience to present my case with to my friend.
One of my main concerns with a hard finish is wood movement - this benchtop is 3100 x 600 and 35 mm thick.
Any movement (inevitable) and there may be cracking, necessitating complete refinishing. I know marine finishes traditionally have a higher oil content to accommodate wood movement, but still...

Gumbungle

[elanjacobs]

I hadn't even thought of cracking from movement and you're right about refinishing; natural finishes can be patched, poly will have to be sanded back and re-done.

[Trav]

I reckon wooden benches should be used like cutting boards so they need to be simple to refinish.

[Chief Tiff]

I'm currently building my kitchen benchtops out of red gum and using Organoil, I was put onto this by forum member LGS, try looking at this:damnfinefurniture (http://www.sanding.damnfinefurniture.com)

Another option is the glass like pour on coating, Dai Sensei has done this and was kind enough to send me some pictures of the finished result. It requires some very careful preparation and application but the depth of gloss is superb.

I built a few items out of cypress and made my own wipe on/off finish. I found that this timber is remarkably stable: I bought it pretty green in rough sawn 1" planks and made my own 3/4" thick boards from it without really bothering to get it dry, I remember seeing a wet section right in the heart of the planks as I docked them to length. I guess I may have extremely lucky here that there was no warping or splitting anywhere at all, especially considering that they were made in Vic around 11 years ago then moved to Darwin, then Perth and finally Bundy.

[AngelaPetruzzi]

The higher the gloss level the more one would see any imperfections. The surface whilst hard, will only look as good as the day it is done until the first scratch appears and one cannot spot repair a varnish coating. Many bench tops will have areas where sunshine may be an issue, this with humidity etc one can just about guarantee that there will be timber movement. Apart from any unsightly gaps that will happen, any break in the coating will allow any water to seep underneath the coating eventually making it go grey. This is especially so near sinks. The only way to rectify would be to sand back completely.

Apart from the high gloss level, The Kunos countertop oil has the benefits of being vapour permeable so allowing the timber to move, can be spot repaired or rejuvenated and is certified food safe and heat resistant to 50 degrees.
There are many products on the market, some good some not so good. In the end, it will depend on what you friend wants the outcome to look like.